Roxas still banner bearer – LP official

Although the ruling Liberal Party (LP) is not closing the doors on adopting candidates outside it, it is “still very confident” that Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas 2nd will carry the LP banner in the 2016 elections, a high ranking party official said.

LP Secretary General Mel Senen Sarmiento, in a statement on Sunday, cited trust ratings of President Benigno Aquino 3rd, who heads the LP, showing that Aquino’s endorsement will be a game changer in the balloting two years from now.

“Secretary Roxas is a victim of this relentless political mudslinging but despite all these nasty and below-the-belt attacks against him, he remains very focused in helping President Aquino in carrying out all the reforms needed to bring our nation forward,” Sarmiento said.

“I think that with President Aquino’s endorsement, people would soon realize that Secretary Roxas played a very important role in ensuring the success of his administration,” he added.

Aquino managed to raise his ratings, according to Pulse Asia, with him having majority approval and trust of Filipinos with 59 percent approval rating and 56 percent trust rating.

The survey said he enjoyed majority approval and trust across almost all geographic areas and socio-economic classes, except in Metro Manila where 49 percent of the respondents said they approved or trusted the President.

Sarmiento, also a congressman representing Samar, called Aquino’s trust ratings not only an affirmation of the administration’s performance but also a reflection of the President’s endorsement power.

“The Pulse Asia survey showing President Aquino as the most trusted government official is a proof that he is doing the right thing for our country and our people. This also shows that the President’s endorsement will be the ultimate game-changer in 2016 and all could shatter whatever are the results of the present voters’ preference surveys,” he said.

Meanwhile, the approval rating of Vice President Jejomar Binay, who was recently investigated by the Senate on accusations of wrongdoings, suffered a 21-percent drop from 66 percent in September to 45 percent in November. His trust rating also dropped from 64 percent to 44 percent.

In contrast to Aquino, Binay has 50 percent approval and 49 percent trust in Metro Manila with ratings lower in the Visayas, Mindanao and among Class D and Class E citizens.

Senate President Franklin Drilon’s approval rating for November improved at 47 percent from 39 percent, as well as that of House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. at 34 percent from 30 percent and Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno at 37 percent from 33 percent.

Their trust ratings also improved: Drilon with 42 percent from 37; Belmonte, 31 percent from 27 percent; and Sereno with 33 percent from 30 percent.